Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Paravane

The paravane (aka water kite, sweep, tadpole) was developed during WWI as a countermeasure against underwater mines.

It had a secondary usage against submarines that was probably infrequently used, and even less often likely to be successful.

I became aware of this obscure piece of equipment because they were shown in the Haifuri anime from last year, so when I came across some 1/72 scale models while browsing through Shapeways, I decided to buy a couple of the more inexpensive models from the 3D Boats store.

Three sentence review of Haifuri from Himeuta Channel

The models I bought were described as early RN paravanes, but they also looked like certain types of USN and IJN paravanes as well. Unfortunately, I couldn't really find any references on the appearance and classification of WWII paravanes to verify any of this.

The models were printed with the Frosted Ultra Detail material, and require the addition of some bent wire to complete.

I believe this is a Type B Mk. IV paravane

The resin used for the print allows a good level of detail. but is still unable to achieve the perfectly smooth surfaces of traditional models. FUD seems to be somewhat brittle, so care is needed when handling models made with the material (particularly with very thin parts).

The translucent properties of the material looks like it might have potential applications as well.

The models are covered with a sticky layer of support wax, and dust will stick to the wax and form a gooey mess on the surface if they are left on the desktop for any period of time.

To remove the wax, I washed the models with dishwasher detergent, then swabbed them down with 95% isopropanol.

I sprayed one of the models with a couple of coats of gray primer, hoping that the paint was sufficient to hide the layer lines of the print.

The top of the model didn't look too bad, but the lines on the underside of the model became a lot more apparent after the primer (I think they were a lot deeper to begin with, but it was difficult to tell until the model was painted).

I guess I need to add some smoothing epoxy to my shopping list for next month in order to finish these models.